as it stand today, ow deficit and debt are unsustainable. last year we ran a budget deficit of well over $1 trillion and we now have a national debt that exceeds $16 trillion. if we don't get these numbers under control, interesting payments will inevitably skyrocket, taking up a larger and larger percentage of our budget, until they crowd out other critical pro-growth investments in our country's competitiveness and the essential social safety net that puts a circle of protection around the most vulnerable in our country. and, madam president, i don't believe either one of us wants to put those two vital things at risk venal whe. when the budget is so out of rick, we have to take a look at the money coming in and going out of the only way to get back on track is to address both sides of the equation -- revenue and spending. we have to find a balanced solution that combines tough spending cuts with reforms to our tax code that bring in more revenue while also ensuring fairness to taxpayers. there is, madam president, real momentum, i believe